Courtly motifs in "Le roman du Comte d’Anjou"

Sources, structure, style, characters and themes of Le roman du Comte d'Anjou are examined to show how its narrative is transitional. Jean Maillart, its probable author, combines early medieval noble beliefs with contemporary motifs. His objective in writing Le roman du Comte d'Anjou is to improve the image of the decadent nobility.
Le roman du Comte d'Anjou's text has few factual details. Instead of assigning personal names to his characters, Maillart concentrates on the art of expressing thoughts and actions. Like the characters he creates, the author remains anonymous. Maillart does not overtly sign his name but alludes to it in the romance's cryptographic conclusion.
Because past information is primarily obtained from oral sources, historical events in Le roman du Comte d'Anjou are distorted. The concept of time is not chronological, nor are facts accurate. Such a lack of temporal precision further supports the premise that Maillart's romance is indeed medieval rather than a work of the Renaissance.
The overlapping of medieval romance and historiography are analyzed since they focus on the nobility and on multidimensional characters which appear in both genres. Marvels and miracles are inherent to historical works as well as to romances like Le roman du Comte d'Anjou, and both are essential to the development of the narrative.
Maillart blends both old courtly values with contemporary beliefs and characters, and in so doing, manages to capture the essence of his era by reflecting the gradual but steady shift from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance.